Chapter Fifteen
Cheshire
My phone’s ring broke the silence in the garage. I’d stepped out here to clear my head, and thankfully the place was empty. I snatched up the phone, the screen flashing “Unknown Caller.” My gut clenched. Nothing good ever came from calls like these.
“Talk to me,” I said as I accepted the call, then pressed the speaker button.
“Cheshire,” the voice sounded distorted, like it had been scrambled electronically. “Sheriff knows you’ve got Eliza. He’s coming for her.”
The line went dead. I stared at the phone, my jaw tightening until it ached. Sheriff Holmes, that twisted son of a bitch, breathing down our necks again. And Eliza -- Goddamn it, she wasn’t going back to that hellhole.
“Cheshire, what’s wrong?” Knave’s voice pulled me back, his eyes narrowing at the look on my face. I hadn’t even heard him come out here.
“Sheriff’s on the move,” I said, my voice low and steady, even though I felt anything but. “He wants Eliza.”
Knave’s fists clenched, veins popping on his tattooed arms. “Not happening.”
“Damn straight.” I slid my phone into my pocket and turned on my heel, heading for where my bike stood, gleaming under the flickering lights. “We hit him first. That’s the only way to keep her safe.”
“Are we ready?” Mock asked, skepticism in his tone as he joined us.
“Doesn’t matter. We’ve got no choice.” Rabbit and Carpenter came into the garage as well, probably sensing something was about to happen. “Rabbit, care to join us?”
“I’m there if you need me,” he said, the fire in his eyes telling me he was all in. For once, his anxiety seemed almost nonexistent.
We had to keep Eliza safe, had to take down Sheriff Holmes before he could lay another finger on her, or anyone else. The club was my family, but Eliza… she was something more, something worth fighting for. We weren’t just defending her. We were declaring war. It had been a fight that started when Jo showed up, and I knew it wouldn’t end until we’d taken them all down. But the shit with Jo had been more of a skirmish. Well, several of them until we’d finally ended Eddie Lewis. This was different. Even though Eddie had been connected to some pretty powerful people, it was nothing compared to taking on the sheriff and mayor’s office.
I knew one thing for certain: this was it. No turning back. We were heading straight into the storm, and hell itself couldn’t stop us now. I’d do whatever it took to make that man pay for all his sins.
I stopped not too far from the clubhouse when I saw a familiar vehicle outside the diner. I pulled over and went inside, finding Park in one of the booths. The moment he saw me, the fury coming off me in waves, he understood what was happening.
“Where’s he holed up?” Fuck pleasantries. I didn’t have time for it.
“Warehouse on the edge of town,” Park said, tapping his phone screen, sending the location to mine. “Got a nasty nest of vipers with him. I’d debated telling you.”
“Well, I got an anonymous call telling me the sheriff is after Eliza. It’s not like I’m going to sit back and let it happen.”
Park’s jaw tightened and he gave a sharp nod. “Right. If she’s in trouble, then you have to go.”
I still didn’t like the way he talked about her, but for now he was on our side, and I needed all the allies I could get. I went back out to my bike and led my brothers to the warehouse’s location. It loomed ahead, ugly and rusting, and surrounded by goons who looked like trouble had birthed them. Too many.
“Looks like a full house,” I muttered, eyeing the rough crew through narrowed lids.
“Party crashers, that’s us,” Mock said with a twisted smile that didn’t reach his eyes. He knew as well as I did this could get bloody.
“Stay sharp,” I warned, cutting the engine, the silence sudden and heavy. We were four against a horde, but we had steel wills and iron fists. We didn’t have a choice if we wanted to survive.
“Always am,” Rabbit said, though his hand trembled as he checked to see what weapons he had on him. With Rabbit, there was always a chance he’d hidden things in his clothes or boots without realizing it. I’d watched him on several occasions, and it was like his hands and brain weren’t always connected. He’d often pull something from his pocket and stare at it like he had no clue how it had gotten there.
“Let’s make some noise,” Knave said, and it wasn’t excitement in his voice but the calm before a storm.
Leaving wasn’t an option now. The men spotted us and started to move. “Take them down!” I yelled, as I charged.
Knave was a shadow on my right, his fists hammers against pounding flesh and bone. Mock’s wild laughter cut through the din, a manic soundtrack to the chaos he sowed with every swing. Rabbit, quick and wiry, ducked and dodged like he’d been born in a brawl.
Thankfully, none of the sheriff’s men had pulled a weapon yet. Part of me wondered why and found it odd, but if it meant we had a chance at a fair fight, I’d take it.
“Cheshire!” Knave’s voice, a warning. I twisted just in time, avoiding an uppercut to my jaw.
We moved as one, but these bastards were tough -- tougher than we’d anticipated. They absorbed our hits, retaliated with brutal precision. It wasn’t just their strength. There was technique behind those punches. These weren’t common thugs.
“Trained…” I grunted, blocking a kick aimed for my head. “These guys… are trained.”
“Didn’t sign up for easy,” Mock shouted back, swinging wide and taking out two goons with a single blow.
“Keep at it!” The words ripped from my throat as I slammed my fist into another face. Couldn’t think about the pain, the way my knuckles split and bled. Had to focus. Had to keep moving.
“Cheshire!”
I spun, Rabbit’s call snapping me to attention. A monstrous brute bore down on him, muscles coiled and ready to strike. Without thinking, I intercepted, tackling the giant at the knees. We hit the ground, a tangle of limbs and fury.
“Thanks.” Rabbit’s nod was short, his eyes already scanning for the next threat.
“Anytime,” I panted, rolling off the fallen enemy.
“Where’s the sheriff?” Knave’s voice cut through the noise, low and urgent.
“Back!” I pointed with a bloodied hand toward the figure watching us, his hands folded calmly behind his back. Sheriff Holmes. Always in control, even when his world was crashing down. Or maybe ours was the one being wrecked right now. It was hard to say who was winning.
“Go!” I pushed Knave toward him, even as I squared off against another attacker. “I got this!”
“Watch your six, Cheshire!” Mock called out before darting after Knave.
“Always do!” I smirked, despite the ache in my ribs, the fire in my blood. This was what we did, what we lived for. And for Eliza, who deserved a life free of the sheriff’s grasp.
The battle raged on, seeming as if it would never end.
Blood dripped from my knuckles, the taste of iron hot on my tongue. I glared at the man before me -- just another obstacle between me and the sheriff. His eyes were dead set on mine, a mirror of my own resolve. We’d been trading blows for what felt like hours, each hit a promise to keep going until only one of us was left standing.
He lunged at me, a gleam of steel catching the light. Knife. I cursed under my breath and whipped out my blade, the curved, serrated edge perfect for doing some damage. Our dance turned deadly. He was good, slicing air inches from my face, but I was better -- or at least I had more to fight for.
His blade bit into my arm, a line of fire searing through flesh. Pain screamed up my limb, but it was just noise -- background static to the adrenaline pumping through my veins. I couldn’t afford to falter, not now. Eliza’s face flashed in my mind, her smile reminding me what I was fighting for.
“Is that all you’ve got?” I taunted, spinning away from another strike. My voice was ragged, edged with the strain of combat.
The man sneered, circling like a shark scenting blood. He didn’t understand that every brother by my side was a reason to endure, to push past the burn in my muscles and the haze clouding my vision. That I had a sweet woman at home counting on me to put an end to this nightmare.
I parried his next attack, metal singing against metal. He was relentless, but so was I. They thought they could wear us down, take back what they believed was theirs. They didn’t know the Underland MC -- the family I’d bleed for, the love I’d die for.
“Come on, you son of a bitch,” I snarled.
“Cheshire!” Mock’s shout pierced the chaos, but I couldn’t look away, not even for a second. The battle was here, now.
My attacker pushed forward, trying to overpower me. But I stood firm.
“You’ll never take her. I’ll die before I let any of you lay a hand on her.”
The air was thick with violence. My boots slid on the grit and blood of the parking lot. I’d cut the bastard far more times than he’d gotten me, and yet he was still standing, still coming at me like a charging bull.
“Cheshire!” Knave’s voice cut through the noise, his fist connecting with some thug’s jaw in a spray of spit and blood.
“Got this!” I yelled back, ducking a wild swing meant to lay me out cold. We were outnumbered but not outmatched.
I spun, a roundhouse kick sending another one of the sheriff’s goons sprawling. He hit the pavement with a grunt, scrambling to rise. Rabbit was beside me then, a flash of silver in his hand as he took down a brute twice his size. Mock fought like a demon, a wicked laugh bursting from him each time he landed a blow.
“Watch it,” I grunted as Rabbit ducked a pipe swung at his head. These fuckers had decided to bring the heat, and they were tiring us out. Probably the plan from the start.
“Thanks, brother,” he spat, kicking the attacker’s knees out from under him.
The fight was a blur -- a mess of adrenaline and instinct. I didn’t think. I moved. Fought. Survived. Every strike I delivered was for Eliza, every block for my brothers.
Pain was just a whisper in the back of my mind, something to be acknowledged, then ignored. My sliced arm screamed with each movement, but it couldn’t drown out the roar of battle. I hadn’t survived IEDs, surprise attacks by insurgents, and all manner of other things while I’d been active duty just to lose to some damn local thugs now.
“End this shit!” I shouted, eyes scanning for Sheriff Holmes, but the fucker was nowhere in sight, his goons bearing the brunt of his cowardice.
“Finish them!” Knave roared back, his knuckles red and split.
It was down to the last few now, the ones still stupid or brave enough to stand. They swayed on their feet, battered and bloody. But the assholes just wouldn’t stay down!
I locked eyes with the last man standing once Knave and Rabbit took down two more. A behemoth who clearly hadn’t had enough. He charged, all rage and no finesse. I sidestepped, letting his momentum do half the work. Then, with a twist of my body and a surge of everything I had left, I drove my fist into his kidney.
He howled and staggered. A second punch to the throat silenced him, dropping him like a sack of dirt to the ground.
“Stay down,” I snarled, standing over him, chest heaving, my grin fierce and feral.
His eyes rolled back, and he slumped unconscious. Around me, the sounds of conflict died away, replaced by heavy breaths and the distant wail of sirens. Son of a bitch! The bastard, Sheriff Holmes, had apparently called in the cavalry.
“Cheshire…” Mock’s voice was somewhere between impressed and concerned.
“Let them come,” I said, turning to face my brothers, my family. “We have more important things to handle. The sheriff is gone.”
“Son of a bitch,” Knave spat. “Knew he wouldn’t have the guts to face us.”
“Doesn’t matter.” I clenched my fists, feeling the sting of fresh cuts. “He’ll keep coming for her. We need to be ready.”
“Always are,” Mock said, his voice steady despite the blood streaking down his face. “What’s next, VP?”
“War,” I said simply. “We protect Eliza. We crush anyone who tries to take her. End of story. And when all this is over with, we’ll have carved the corruption out of Warren, and this town can begin to heal.”
The sirens grew louder, closing in. We didn’t need to be caught here. Not like this. If the sheriff called those men, then they were likely on his side.
“Let’s move,” I ordered, and my brothers nodded, their faces set in hard lines.
This wasn’t over. Not by a long shot.